Brilliant holiday hair tricks

Oh, the frayed, frizzy and fraught unpredictability of holiday hair. I still cringe when I think about the time I strode into the surf at Macaroni beach on Mustique and was tumbled back onto shore like the contents of a washing machine. Limping up the sand past Mick and Jade Jagger, Tommy Hilfiger and Pierce Brosnan with a bikini full of sand and my hair matted, balaclava-style, around my face was humiliating enough, but weeks later I was still picking grains out of the strands. Just the memory of it is making my scalp itch.

If only I knew then what I know now. I've travelled far and wide to investigate the secrets of glorious, bouncy hair that stands up to the challenges of both beach and mountain. I've been to Hawaii and hung out with surfer girls to discover that when you're rolling in the deep, you need to smooth your hair back, like an otter, with some leave-in conditioner. Living Proof No Frizz Leave-in Conditioner (£21, marksandspencer.com) works for me. The trick is to put it on before you get in the sea, not after, as it creates a barrier that stops the salt from absorbing into the hair shaft and drying it into a frizz ball. For detangling, I've road-tested all kinds of hairbrushes and hands down the best is the Wet Brush (£11.99, cultbeauty.co.uk), which cuts through the deepest, most foresty knots like a hot knife through butter. It saves time and tantrums, so I use it religiously on my children too.

Advertisement

Jenny Zarins

When it comes to holiday styling, my mantra has always been to keep things simple. For years, I've relied on a slicked-backed pony tail to take me from the beach to the beach bar. However, after a recent visit to über-colourist Josh Wood, I'm rethinking my strategy. 'The wet-look pony tail is very last season,' says Wood. 'If you want to be on-trend but you've no time to dry your hair between showering and running out for dinner, just comb a walnut-sized dollop of hair mask through it.' I love Onira Organics The Mask (£60, net-a-porter). 'Masks are best for this kind of casual styling as hair oils are too greasy and gels too crunchy,' he says. 'Loosely twist your hair and tie it back in a messy bun, pulling a few stray strands out to frame the front of your face.' After trial and error, I found Pop Bands (£6 for a pack of five, thepopband.com) are the best for the job. They are snag-free hair elastics that don't make your hair kink. I also discovered that this style is the most low-maintenance way to get beachy, Gisele-like waves - in case you decide to let your hair down after a few Margaritas.

Moving on to colder climes, it's not a bottle of schnapps you need for heading to the slopes but rather Philip B's genius new Russian Amber Roots Up Spray (£59, spacenk.com). A must for skiers who feel panicky about the dreaded prospect of helmet hair, it's the kiss of life for a flat mop. Spritz it over dry hair like a hairspray; I find that tipping my head upside down works best. For added oomph, it has an extra nozzle that flips out like a James Bond gadget to disperse a more concentrated solution directly onto the roots. It blows the doors off backcombing and the neat bottle fits easily into a backpack.

Back at the chalet, I also soupe up my shower routine with Philip Kingsley's Elasticizer (£85, philipkingsley.co.uk), a pre-shampoo conditioning treatment he created back in 1974 for Audrey Hepburn. Comb it through wet hair for a cuticle-smoothing, deep hydration hit. The chilly Alpine air makes hair extra dry and brittle, but this product really helps to curb fly-aways and spilt ends and gives hair an incredibly luscious shine. Drew Barrymore's colourist, Tracey Cunningham of powerhouse LA salon Mèche, also gave me the best tip: rub a Lenor tumble-dryer sheet across your pillow before going to sleep, to stop static. Don't laugh. It really works.